Peer Pressure and Labels
The Power of Peer pressure was introduced by Asch (Henslin, 180). Asch’s experiment found 75% of people gave in to peer pressure (Henslin, 180). The experiment pointed out that all of these participants were strangers; if they were your close friends, the desire to be accepted would be even stronger. A gang recruit may not even realize he/she is becoming indoctrinated with the gang beliefs. He/she is just hanging out with friends, one of whom is in a gang and talks about it. He introduces some of his gang friends and the recruit becomes friends with the other gang members. At this point the recruit isn't involved with the gang members, he/she is just being influenced by them. This is the same way people are introduced to new friends and new religions.
If people give in to peer pressure as easily as they seem to, then words may be more powerful than the average person believes. The Power of Labels is when social class or other factors affect how something is perceived. Sociologists found in a study of two groups, the “Saints” and the “Roughnecks”, that the Roughnecks were seen as trouble makers while the Saints were seen as ideal students, despite the fact that they both participated in wild parties, petty theft, and vandalism (Henslin, 226). The difference in social class seemed to play a role and it is important to note that not only the teachers were affected by these labels; police officers also were affected by this dynamic. This same theory can be applied to gangs. Statistically speaking, gangs do not account for the majority of our crime, however they are still viewed as the primary troublemakers.
Gangs were responsible for 43% of the homicides in Los Angeles County in 2005 when Los Angeles was the gang capital of the world (Weiss). This statistic makes gangs seem extremely active and violent. Another statistic from 1993 changes the perspective. It states that gangs are only responsible for 3.1 to 4.1% of serious crimes in the United States (Greene and Pranis). There is obviously a difference in time in these two statistics but another consideration to take into account is where the samples are coming from. If a sample of how many families own a flat screen TVs is taken in a rich, urban area, it is likely to get different results than a survey given to poor, suburban families. Gangs are responsible for many crimes in our country, but it is important not to let labels affect our perception. The next thing that comes to mind is who is committing all of those serious crimes if it isn't the gangs? The “normal” people you go to work with? Statistics show that Americans have a 1 in 133 chances of being murdered (The New York Times) and as a woman, if murdered; there is only an 8.7% chance of being killed by a stranger (Strickland). This means that unless a woman is talking with gang members, it is very unlikely that she will be harmed by them. The husband is actually the most likely assailant because, unfortunately, he is the one with the most motivation.
If people give in to peer pressure as easily as they seem to, then words may be more powerful than the average person believes. The Power of Labels is when social class or other factors affect how something is perceived. Sociologists found in a study of two groups, the “Saints” and the “Roughnecks”, that the Roughnecks were seen as trouble makers while the Saints were seen as ideal students, despite the fact that they both participated in wild parties, petty theft, and vandalism (Henslin, 226). The difference in social class seemed to play a role and it is important to note that not only the teachers were affected by these labels; police officers also were affected by this dynamic. This same theory can be applied to gangs. Statistically speaking, gangs do not account for the majority of our crime, however they are still viewed as the primary troublemakers.
Gangs were responsible for 43% of the homicides in Los Angeles County in 2005 when Los Angeles was the gang capital of the world (Weiss). This statistic makes gangs seem extremely active and violent. Another statistic from 1993 changes the perspective. It states that gangs are only responsible for 3.1 to 4.1% of serious crimes in the United States (Greene and Pranis). There is obviously a difference in time in these two statistics but another consideration to take into account is where the samples are coming from. If a sample of how many families own a flat screen TVs is taken in a rich, urban area, it is likely to get different results than a survey given to poor, suburban families. Gangs are responsible for many crimes in our country, but it is important not to let labels affect our perception. The next thing that comes to mind is who is committing all of those serious crimes if it isn't the gangs? The “normal” people you go to work with? Statistics show that Americans have a 1 in 133 chances of being murdered (The New York Times) and as a woman, if murdered; there is only an 8.7% chance of being killed by a stranger (Strickland). This means that unless a woman is talking with gang members, it is very unlikely that she will be harmed by them. The husband is actually the most likely assailant because, unfortunately, he is the one with the most motivation.